HCV Treatment Guidelines

People considering treatment for hepatitis C should first be tested for hepatitis B virus (HBV) and monitored throughout therapy, as successful elimination of hepatitis C virus (HCV) can reactivate HBV and potentially worsen liver disease, according to recent updates to American and European hepatitis C treatment guidelines.

The European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) released its latest recommendations on treatment of hepatitis C at a special meeting last week in Paris. The updated guidelines now include highly effective interferon-free options for all hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotypes and for the most challenging patients.

In April, coinciding with the International Liver Congress in Barcelona, the World Health Organization (WHO) released an update to its Guidelines for the Screening, Care and Treatment of Patients with Chronic Hepatitis C Infection. The guidelines promote the transition to newer, more effective direct-acting antiviral (DAA) medications that have the potential to cure most people living with hepatitis C. Also during the meeting the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) announced it would update its hepatitis C treatment guidelines at a special conference in September.

The American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, Infectious Diseases Society of America, and International Antiviral Society-USA this week updated their hepatitis C guidelines to add newly approved direct-acting antiviral (DAA) regimens, offering more options for people with HCV genotypes other than 1 or 4. The full guidance is available online at HCVguidelines.org.

The latest updated U.S. recommendations for hepatitis C testing, management, and treatment, compiled by an expert panel of members of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) and partner organizations, have been published in the June 25 advance online edition of Hepatology, the AASLD's professional journal.